Narrative of the surveying voyages of his majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle (vol.2): between the years 1826 and 1836 : describing their examination of the southern shores of South America, and the Beagles's circumnavigation of the globe

1835. BKETX KOKORAREKA TU'UNA. 565 pressions caused by Otaheite, rendered the view of New Zea- land, though novel, rather uninteresting. Cape Brett is a bold promontory, higher than any neigh- bouring land. When first seen from a distant offing, while no other land is in sight, it makes like a quoin-shaped island. As the sea around is free from danger, it is an excellent landfall for shipping approaching this part of the coast. Detached from, but near the cape, is the rock, with a hole or archway through it, named by Cook, ' Piercy Islet.' Point, or rather Cape Pococke, is a steep cliffy headland, of a dark colour, rather picturesque in its appearance : near it there is a conical rocky islet. Numerous islands, small and large, are scattered over the bay ; an expanse of water really about ten miles square, though to the eye it appears much smaller, because so many islands intercept the view. Near the middle of the west side of the bay is the opening of Kororareka Harbour, a secure but shallow port ; better adapted to merchant shipping than to the use of men-of-war. After passing Cape Pococke, and advancing about a mile, a small settlement appeared in the northern bight of the bay ; and the English look of the houses was very gratifying to us. This, I found, was Tipuna, or Rangihoua, the place where the first settlement of white men was made u})on the shores of New Zealand. On the farther side of Kororareka other houses were then seen — neat, and apparently comfortable dwellings, well situated under the Ice of the western hills, while close by, on our right hand, a curious line of flat-topped black rocks, a few feet only above the water, reminded us of the remains of a great mole. Within the line from Cape Pococke to Cape Brett there is not more than thirty fathoms of water ; and every where, ex- cepting close to the rocks, the bottom is soft and tenacious, so that an anchor may be let go in any part. We saw small strag- gling villages of native huts in many places, and around each of them a substantial fence of palisaded posts and rails. These fences, and the cultivated spots of groinid which appear as you proceed up the bay, might give a more favourable idea of the